Editing Wildebeest (section)

==Ecology==

===Predators===
[[File:Taxidermied Lion and Blue Wildebeest, Namibia.jpg|thumb|Taxidermied [[Lion]] and [[Blue Wildebeest]], [[Namibia]]]]

Major predators that feed on wildebeest include the [[lion]], [[Spotted hyena|hyena]], [[African wild dog]], [[cheetah]], [[leopard]], and [[Nile crocodile]], which seem to favour the wildebeest over other prey.<ref name="National geographic"/> Wildebeest, however, are very strong, and can inflict considerable injury even to a lion. Wildebeest have a maximum running speed of around {{convert|80|km/h|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite web| last = PBS| title = Animal Guide: Blue Wildebeest| work = Nature| access-date = 8 January 2013| url = https://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/animal-guides/animal-guide-blue-wildebeest/3255/| archive-date = 15 June 2013| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130615011916/http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/animal-guides/animal-guide-blue-wildebeest/3255/| url-status = dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite book| publisher = Cambridge University Press| isbn = 9780521576734| last = McGowan| first = Christopher| title = A Practical Guide to Vertebrate Mechanics| date = 28 February 1999|page=162}}</ref> The primary defensive tactic is herding, where the young animals are protected by the older, larger ones, while the herd runs as a group. Typically, the predators attempt to isolate a young or ill animal and attack without having to worry about the herd. Wildebeest have developed additional sophisticated cooperative behaviours, such as animals taking turns sleeping while others stand guard against a night attack by invading predators. Wildebeest migrations are closely followed by [[vulture]]s, as wildebeest carcasses are an important source of food for these scavengers. The vultures consume about 70% of the wildebeest carcasses available. Decreases in the number of migrating wildebeest have also had a negative effect on the vultures.<ref name=Virani>{{cite journal|last=Virani|first=Munir Z.|author2=Kendall, Corinne |author3=Njoroge, Peter |author4=Thomsett, Simon |title=Major declines in the abundance of vultures and other scavenging raptors in and around the Masai Mara ecosystem, Kenya|journal=Biological Conservation |year=2011 |volume=144 |pages=746–752 |doi=10.1016/j.biocon.2010.10.024 |issue=2}}</ref> In the Serengeti ecosystem, Tanzania, wildebeest may help facilitate the migration of other, smaller-bodied grazers, such as [[Thomson's gazelle]]s (''Eudorcas thomsonii''), which eat the new-growth grasses stimulated by wildebeest foraging.<ref>{{cite journal |author=McNaughton, S. J. |year=1979 |title=Grazing as an optimization process: grass-ungulate relationships in the Serengeti |journal=The American Naturalist |volume=113 |issue=5 |pages=691–703 |jstor=2459961 |doi=10.1086/283426|s2cid=85338998}}</ref>

===Interactions with nonpredators===
[[Zebra]]s and wildebeest group together in open savannah environments with high chances of predation. This grouping strategy reduces predation risk because larger groups decrease each individual's chance of being hunted, and predators are more easily seen in open areas.<ref name=Thaker>{{cite journal|last=Thaker|first=Maria|author2=Abi T. Vanak |author3=Cailey R. Owen |author4=Monika B. Ogden |author5=Rob Slotow |title=Group Dynamics of Zebra and Wildebeest in a Woodland Savanna: Effects of Predation Risk and Habitat Density|journal=PLOS ONE|year=2010|volume=5|issue=9|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0012758|editor1-last=Getz|editor1-first=Wayne M.|pages=e12758|pmid=20862216|pmc=2942830|bibcode=2010PLoSO...512758T|doi-access=free}}</ref> The seasonal presence of thousands of migratory wildebeests reduces local lion predation on giraffe calves, resulting in greater survival of giraffes.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Lee|first1=Derek E.|last2=Kissui|first2=Bernard M.|last3=Kiwango|first3=Yustina A.|last4=Bond|first4=Monica L.|date=2016-10-01|title=Migratory herds of wildebeests and zebras indirectly affect calf survival of giraffes|journal=Ecology and Evolution|volume=6|issue=23|language=en|pages=8402–8411|doi=10.1002/ece3.2561|pmid=28031792|pmc=5167056|issn=2045-7758}}</ref>

Wildebeest can also listen in on the alarm calls of other species, and by doing so, can reduce their risk of predation. One study showed, along with other ungulates, wildebeests responded more strongly to the baboon alarm calls compared to the baboon contest calls, though both types of calls had similar patterns, amplitudes, and durations. The alarm calls were a response of the baboons to lions, and the contest calls were recorded when a dispute between two males occurred.<ref name=Kitchen>{{cite journal|last=Kitchen|first=Dawn M.|author2=Thore J. Berman |author3=Dorothy L. Cheney |author4=James R. Nicholson |author5=Robert M. Seyfarth |title=Comparing Responses of Four Ungulate Species to Playbacks of Baboon Alarm Calls|journal=Animal Cognition|year=2010|volume=13|issue=6|pages=861–870|doi=10.1007/s10071-010-0334-9|pmid=20607576|s2cid=5736705}}</ref> Wildebeest compete with domesticated livestock for pasture and are sometimes blamed by farmers for transferring diseases and parasites to their cattle.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Wildebeests in Africa! Visit Africa|url=https://visitafrica.site/wildebeests-in-africa.html|access-date=2021-02-25|website=visitafrica.site|language=en-GB|archive-date=4 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210304152326/https://visitafrica.site/wildebeests-in-africa.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Breeding and reproduction===
[[File:Drink From Mom Wildebeest.ogv|thumb|Video of a wildebeest feeding its calf]]

Wildebeest do not form permanent pair bonds and during the mating season, or [[rut (mammalian reproduction)|rut]], the males establish temporary territories and try to attract females into them. These small territories are about {{convert|3000|m2|sqft acre|||}}, with up to 300 territories per {{convert|1|km2|sqmi acre|||}}. The males defend these territories from other males while competing for females that are coming into oestrus. The males use grunts and distinctive behaviour to entice females into their territories. Wildebeest usually breed at the end of the rainy season when the animals are well fed and at their peak of fitness.<ref name=ulfstrand /> This usually occurs between May and July, and birthing usually takes place between January and March, at the start of the wet season. Wildebeest females breed seasonally and ovulate spontaneously.<ref name=Clay>{{cite journal|last=Clay|first=A. Moss|author2=Estes, R. D.|author3=Thompson, K. V.|author4=Wildt, D. E.|author5=Monfort, S. L.|title=Endocrine Patterns of the Estrous Cycle and Pregnancy of Wildebeest in the Serengeti Ecosystem|journal=General and Comparative Endocrinology |year=2010 |volume=166 |issue=2 |pages=365–371|doi=10.1016/j.ygcen.2009.12.005|pmid=20036667}}</ref>

The [[estrous cycle]] is about 23 days and the gestation period lasts 250 to 260 days. The calves weigh about {{convert|21|kg|0|abbr=on}} at birth<ref name=Benirschke/> and scramble to their feet within minutes, being able to move with the herd soon afterwards,<ref name="National geographic"/> a fact on which their survival relies.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://wildlifetv.wordpress.com/2013/05/11/how-do-baby-wildebeest-survive/ |title=How do baby Wildebeest survive? |date=11 May 2013 |publisher=Wildlife TV |access-date=7 October 2017}}</ref> The main predator of the calves is the [[spotted hyena]]. The calving peak period lasts for 2–3 weeks, and in small subpopulations and isolated groups, mortality of calves may be as high as 50%. However, in larger aggregations, or small groups living near large herds, mortality rates may be under 20%.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Estes, Richard D. |year=1976 |title=The significance of breeding synchrony in the wildebeest |journal=African Journal of Ecology |volume=14 |issue=2 |pages=135–152 |doi=10.1111/j.1365-2028.1976.tb00158.x}}</ref>

Groups of wildebeest females and young live in the small areas established by the male. When groups of wildebeest join, the female to male ratio is higher because the females choose to move to the areas held by a smaller number of males.<ref name=Thaker /> This female-dominated sex ratio may be due to illegal hunting and human disturbance, with higher male mortality having been attributed to hunting.<ref name=Nidablema>{{cite journal |last=Ndibalema |first=Vedasto G.|title=A comparison of sex ratio, birth periods and calf survival among Serengeti wildebeest sub-populations, Tanzania |journal=African Journal of Ecology |year=2009 |volume=47 |issue=4 |pages=574–582 |doi=10.1111/j.1365-2028.2008.00994.x}}</ref>